A Pumphrey Brothers Cover Reveal! Conversation and a Peek at The Old Sleigh

Well, I couldn’t resist. I’m just having too much fun with these cover reveals and Q&As these days. And when I get the chance to premiere the Pumphrey brothers’ latest picture book? AND it’s a follow up to The Old Truck and The Old Boat? AND it’s got this crazy beautiful gold foil on the cover?

Folks, I’m only human.

Today, it is my delight and honor to give you a sneak peek into THE OLD SLEIGH (on sale 11/4/25). Or, as the publisher likes to describe it:

“On a cold winter’s night of deep snow, an old sleigh delivers needful things—firewood for warmth, joyous rides through the snow, presents for loved ones. But as the town takes these gifts, the sleigh is given less care and lies broken and abandoned—until another snowbound night and a new family give the old sleigh new life and purpose. The Old Sleigh delivers heart, hope, and holiday cheer in a magical companion to The Old Truck and The Old Boat sure to become a newly beloved classic.”

Folks, please put your hands together for Jarrett and Jerome Pumphrey!!

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Betsy Bird: Jarrett and Jerome! A million thanks for joining us today! And congrats on THE OLD SLEIGH’s imminent release! Just to get down to basics, where did the idea for a sleigh, particularly, come from? 

Jarrett Pumphrey: Betsy! Thanks for having us. Always a pleasure.

Jerome Pumphrey: Yes, thank you! As for where the idea for a sleigh came from, well, it came from Jarrett. He can explain what he was thinking.

Jarrett: I can remember exactly when I first thought about old sleighs. It was February 15, 2021. Overnight, everything in Central Texas where we live froze. We got more snow than I’ve ever seen in Texas. Texas had become a winter wonderland. But the thing is, Texas didn’t know how to be a winter wonderland. Roads closed. Trees iced up. Power lines came down. It seemed like the whole state was shut down. THE OLD TRUCK had been out for about a year, and we were just about to release THE OLD BOAT. Old trucks and boats were very top of mind. But all the trucks (and boats) in Texas wouldn’t have beaten a sleigh in weather like that. And just like that, I had old sleighs on the brain. But we told ourselves no matter what, our next book would not be an old vehicle book. We didn’t want to become known as those guys who make books about old things. So we sat on it for a holiday season, did a few other projects, and then when we thought maybe it was time, we waited some more just to be sure. Then at a school visit, a kid asked us if we’d thought about making a book about an old bus. A teacher suggested an old train (we got lots of old trains, especially from adults). We even got a couple old rockets, which was interesting. THE OLD SLEIGH was there waiting patiently when we finally accepted what everyone else already seemed to see–we like old stuff. Especially old stuff we connect with personally. I don’t know that we’d have a story about an old sleigh if it weren’t for that freakish Texas winter of 2021.

BB: I love all of that, though I am a little sad you haven’t done an Old Rocket yet. Of course, you’ve a particular feel for old things falling into disrepair and then later given new life. Not simply with THE OLD TRUCK and THE OLD BOAT but also on books you didn’t write like THE LAST STAND (though in that case it’s an old farmer’s market). In the case of TRUCK, BOAT, and SLEIGH I’m reminded of classic children’s book creators like Virginia Lee Burton. When you first wrote THE OLD TRUCK was anyone else’s work on your mind at all? And why do you gravitate towards these tales of redemption? 

Jerome: We both love Virginia Lee Burton’s work so much. Jarrett actually has some of her original artwork framed in the studio. But I think our deep appreciation really came after so many people compared THE OLD TRUCK to THE LITTLE HOUSE, which was beyond flattering. That said, we can’t say her work was on our minds as we were creating. Instead, we were thinking more about capturing the simplicity and wonder that you see in the work of Ezra Jack Keats. We even paid a visual tribute to THE SNOWY DAY with the style of bed in the bedroom scene of THE OLD TRUCK.

More broadly, with all of our books, we try to create the kinds of stories we would have loved as children—stories with images that hopefully feel as charming and enduring as the ones we remember from the books our mom read to us. And the way influences work, I have no doubt that Virginia Lee Burton’s books, along with many other classics, have shaped the way we tell stories.

As for why we’re drawn to these tales of redemption—there’s just something powerful about things that endure. Whether it’s an old truck, boat, sleigh, or even a farmer’s market, there’s meaning in something being cared for, restored, and given a new purpose. I think that reflects how we see the world: objects carry history, and with time, care, and imagination, they can find new life. That idea is at the heart of so many of our stories.

Jarrett: What Jerome said. And I’ll just add that in addition to the classics percolating in the background as we made THE OLD TRUCK, we were also a little obsessed with reading everything we could get our hands on from those who would be our contemporaries. Just four of the many books I remember returning to over and over again: DU IZ TAK? by Carson Ellis, THEY ALL SAW A CAT by Brendan Wenzel, THE LITTLE BARBARIAN by Renato Moriconi, and SAM AND DAVE DIG A HOLE by Mac Barnett & Jon Klassen.

BB: Excellent choices, one and all. THE OLD SLEIGH times out well for the holiday season as a wintery but non-denominational choice. I gotta ask it: Do you have any sleigh memories of your own? For that matter, did you happen to do any sleigh-related research for this book? 

Jarrett: The only sleigh memories I have are of our mom, who was trying her best to make the rather hot and humid Texas holidays a little more magical, taking us for wagon rides. A wagon ride kinda counts as a sleigh ride if you go at night and the fairgrounds puts up twinkly lights and somehow keeps all the fake snow from melting away before your turn. It was a little thing. It didn’t take much. The sleigh rides weren’t real but the magic was and those memories of tradition and connection are. That’s what’s stuck around long after the fake snow melted.

Jerome: As for research, we always immerse ourselves in the worlds we create. For THE OLD SLEIGH, that meant looking at historic sleigh designs, studying how people cared for and restored them, and understanding the role sleighs played in winter communities. That research helped us ground the story in something real, even though its heart comes from something more abstract—the way traditions carry meaning across time.

There’s also a lot of firewood cutting happening in this book. This past winter my wife and I spent a lot of time doing land clearing, cutting up firewood and clearing out fallen trees on our property that we moved to about a year ago. We bought a bunch of axes and chainsaws and learned what it takes to make an 8 ft pile of firewood. I’m not at lumberjack level, but I’m counting that as research too.

BB: Well, naturally. And you’ve been perfecting your style for quite some time now. Was there anything you did differently with this title? 

Jerome: We used our same printmaking method that we’ve developed over the years using craft foam stamps, but one thing that may have been different is that for this book, I designed the stamps and Jarret crafted all of them. We separated the roles for efficiency this time.

Jarrett: Hopefully, if you loved THE OLD TRUCK, you’ll love this one too.

BB: One might look at THE OLD SLEIGH and figure you’ve finished your trilogy. Do you envision  more “OLD” books on the horizon, or are you stopping here with this final foray? 

Jerome: For now, we don’t envision another one and a trilogy feels just right. But I don’t think we’d rule it out if inspiration strikes.

Jarrett: Yeah, won’t say never. Who knows, maybe a meteorite lands freakishly close to my house and sends me down a rabbit hole about space and asteroid wrangling and I get old rockets on the brain. Who knows!

BB: Oo! Now you have me hoping for harmless meteorites! Finally, what else do you have coming out these days? What’s next for you after SLEIGH?

Jarrett: Out July 1, we’ve got LINK + HUD: SHARKS AND MINNOWS, the second book in our format-bending chapter book/graphic novel hybrid series about two brothers with active imaginations. And then after THE OLD SLEIGH, we’ve got more LINK + HUD in book 3, plus more picture books!

Jerome: I also have another picture book coming out this year called SO MANY YEARS: A JUNETEENTH STORY, written by Anne Wynter, published by Clarion Books, which will be released on May 6, 2025. For the illustrations I used acrylic paint on wood board which was new for me. Excited for this one to come out!

Jarrett: Jerome won’t gush about his own work, but I certainly will. It’s beautiful. Jerome and Anne have made a gorgeous book!

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Awww. See? That’s some sweet brotherly love right there.

Well, you’ve all been very patient so here’s the cover I keep telling you about:

Gigantic thanks to Jerome and Jarrett for taking so much time and care and effort to answer my questions today. As I mentioned before, THE OLD SLEIGH is on sale November 4th. Thanks too to Naomi Duttweiler and the team at Norton Young Readers for helping to put this together. Don’t delay! Pre-order your copy today.

Filed under: Cover Reveal, Interviews